KZN mother: We lost everything in floods but remain thankful
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Mariannridge mother Gail Nero says she's lost her home and everything she owned
in the floods but she remains thankful.
"It was absolutely traumatic, some mornings I wake up 3am and I'm tears thinking of the what if because there was so much devastation but I thank God that we came out of this intact because a building can be replaced but you can't replace a life."
Nero, her fiancée and her daughter were able to escape the muddy wave that enveloped their home on Monday night last week.
"At about quater to one we heard a thunder-like sound, next thing we knew the door came crashing in and the gate was broken. We had a huge mudslide, there was no power so everything was in the dark.
"The only thing I could think about was to get my child out of the house. The mud just kept coming and coming and before we knew it the entire house was completely covered in mud. At that moment we could only think of is to survive."
Nero and her family are staying with relatives.
She says members of their community have selflessly given up their own food and clothing to help them.
They've even gone back to where her home once stood to see if they can help her salvage anything.
"We are trying to fight a neverending battle with the mud which is so high, we don't have access to the house. We are trying to clean it from the outside.
"We've been at it for three days and it's like we are not making any headway because it was so much mud."
Meanwhile, a call's been made for a day of prayer to honour the hundreds of people who lost their lives in the floods.
KZN residents and faith-based organisations are asked to observe a moment of prayer on Thursday for the victims of the floods and the healing of the province.
KZN Premier Sihle Zikalala will lead a provincial day of prayer at the Durban Exhibition Centre.
This is to show solidarity with the bereaved families of those who lost their loved ones in the devastating floods.
A total 448 people have died and many others are still missing.
READ: Body of Durban North domestic helper found after days of digging
Hundreds of people were left homeless and billions worth of infrastructure was damaged after the heavy rains left a trail of destruction.
In a statement, the KZN government described the recent floods as the worst living memory for the province.
Later this morning, EFF leader Julius Malema will visit families in Clare Estate who were affected by the floods.
